Lontó szakrális kisemlékei és a népességi adatok viszonya
The relationship between Lontó’s sacral monuments and population data

Author(s): Márta Bendíkné Szabó
Subject(s): Cultural Anthropology / Ethnology
Published by: Fórum Kisebbségkutató Intézet
Summary/Abstract: In my work, I compared the development of the Catholic population of Lontó with the number of small sacral monuments, relying on data from church visitation records, diocesan registers and censuses. Today, only seven small sacral monuments can be found in the area of the village, which has had a Roman Catholic majority since the Counter-Reformation. No other data has survived for posterity about the three tin-bodied crosses mentioned in the church visitation record of 1779. Of the objects still visible today, the statue of Saint John of Nepomuk, already listed in 1779, is the oldest, and the cast-iron crucifix on the roadside on the cadastral border of Ipolyszakállos and Lontó is probably next in chronological order. The other objects, erected on private initiative, date from the 20th century. The Lourdes grotto built in the garden of the former Jekelfalussy castle, the current Platan Social Service Institute, dates back to 1903, and we can assume that the Podhorszky and Jekelfalussy crypt superstructure was also built at the very beginning of the 20th century. The Mocsári cross, offered in gratitude for the child’s recovery, was made in 1923. The current cemetery cross was erected in its original place, near the bell tower on the main street, in 1938. There was no willingness to erect small sacral monuments even after the Velvet Revolution. Only two new objects were built, both on the territory of the institute: the outdoor statue of Mary and the Lourdes grotto in the castle garden. The older small sacral monuments, however, were renovated with the help of the local government and various tenders. Based on the data obtained, it is obvious that the number of small sacral monuments, which can be considered as material manifestations of religious spirit, is not directly proportional to the number of Catholics living in the settlement in London either. The renovation of objects and the creation of new small structures is primarily a function of the zeal of individuals active in religious life, as well as the availability of financial resources.

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